Citi (C) Wants Out Of Mets Stadium Deal

Hoping to avoid what is sure to end up as a source of embarrassment for both the team and the bank, Citi is looking for ways to break its stadium-naming deal with the Mets.

Politicians have already called on Treasury to somehow intervene and prevent this impending trainwreck. While no decision has been made yet, says WSJ, the bank assures that no TARP money will be used for the $400 million sponsorship, which as we all know, is a laughable promise. We presume any bonuses they may pay out over the next few years isn't TARP money either -- just money that would've gone to shoring up the balance sheet, had the bank not received its double injections.

As The Deal noted yesterday, there's a long history of the stadium name curse, as companies like Enron, PSInet and Adelphia have been stadium sponsors.